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Royals making goodwill trip to aid Joplin

Royals making goodwill trip to aid Joplin

KANSAS CITY -- A Royals contingent will make a goodwill trip to Joplin, Mo., on Monday as part of the club's ongoing support of the city's recovery from the tornado of May 22, 2011.

The team will be in Detroit for a game, so no active players will make the trip but pitcher Danny Duffy, recovering from elbow surgery, will be in the group. Former players scheduled to go include John Mayberry, Willie Aikens, Brian McRae, Greg Pryor and Shawn Sedlacek.

In addition, about 30 front-office associates have volunteered for the day to work with Habitat for Humanity on five homes being built for tornado victims in the "Royals neighborhood." They will be joined by staff from the Northwest Arkansas Naturals, the Royals' Double-A affiliate.

The trip is part of the Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon's Joplin Challenge, a year-long initiative to mobilize sports entities in the state to support the building of 35 homes.

Fans can find out more information on how to help at Royals for Joplin, www.joplinchallenge.mo.gov., www.joplinhabitat.org, http://brightfuturesjoplin.org or by calling AmeriCorps at 417-627-8883.